The European Union’s law enforcement agency, Europol, announced on Tuesday the launch of a new European Centre Against Migrant Smuggling (ECAMS), aimed at strengthening the bloc’s fight against criminal networks that organise irregular migration routes and endanger migrants’ lives. The initiative will expand intelligence-led investigations, digital monitoring, and financial probes across Europe and beyond.

Europol said the newly established ECAMS will act as a central hub to support EU member states in dismantling large-scale migrant smuggling operations. The agency plans to intensify data-driven investigations, open-source intelligence (OSINT) analysis, and financial tracking to target the networks’ business models and cross-border activities.

According to Europol, migrant smuggling groups increasingly operate both offline and online, using digital platforms to recruit accomplices, advertise illicit services, and lure migrants into risky journeys costing thousands of euros. The new centre will combine operational coordination, intelligence sharing, and advanced analytics to help authorities identify high-value targets and disrupt networks more effectively.

“Migrant smuggling networks are operating with increasing complexity, both online and offline,” Europol Executive Director Catherine De Bolle said in a statement. She noted that such groups rely on multi-layered financial systems, including underground banking, to move and conceal profits. “As the criminal landscape evolves, so too must our response,” she added, describing the new centre as a step to enhance cooperation and operational intelligence.

Europol said its support over the past decade has already contributed to thousands of arrests and the dismantling of hundreds of smuggling networks since the launch of its earlier migrant smuggling centre in 2016. In 2025 alone, the agency supported nearly 200 operations and coordinated 56 action days targeting criminal groups involved in migrant smuggling across Europe. During the same period, it processed more than 12,000 intelligence contributions and produced over 1,000 analytical reports to assist investigators.

The agency also highlighted the growing role of digital investigations. Through the DigiNeX network of national digital investigators, coordinated by Europol, authorities are monitoring online activity linked to smuggling operations. Recent joint digital action days involving more than 30 experts targeting networks active in the Mediterranean generated over 1,000 new investigative leads, the agency said.

EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner said the launch of ECAMS follows a broader international push to counter migrant smuggling, including a global alliance announced late last year involving more than 60 partners. The new centre is expected to strengthen intelligence sharing and cross-border cooperation within the EU and with international partners.

Europol estimates that migrant smuggling remains a highly profitable criminal activity, with networks charging up to 20,000 euros per person for journeys across continents. Financial investigations supported by the agency aim to trace and seize illicit profits, undermining the economic foundations of the networks.

Europol said the establishment of ECAMS marks a new phase in the EU’s response to migrant smuggling, with greater emphasis on digital investigations, intelligence sharing, and global partnerships. Officials say the approach could help authorities better disrupt organised criminal groups while raising awareness of the risks migrants face and promoting safer, legal migration pathways.

Source: Press Release